The present invention relates to an adapter or base permitting installing an electronic component removably in a printed circuit. The adapter is more particularly adapted for components using the BGA - ball grid array. BGA components have on their lower surface a grid or matrix for a soldering point in the form of a sphere or portion of a sphere. The printed circuit, in a region adapted to receive the component, comprises a matrix of contact tablets corresponding to the grid of spheres of the component. After the emplacement of the electronic component on the printed circuit, soldering is carried out, for example by passage through an oven, and the connections are thus established between the component and the printed circuit. During the phase or development or emplacement of the circuit, in the scope of operations of maintenance or in the case of failure of a component, it is necessary to be able to replace an electronic component mounted on the printed circuit. This operation must be carried out easily and without requiring new soldering. To solve this problem, there have been proposed adapters comprising two elements, a first female element whose lower surface is soldered on the printed circuit and which has on its upper surface a female connection element. The second element of the adapter comprises on its upper surface a grid of cylindrical tablets on which a component of the BGA type can be soldered. The lower surface of the male component comprises male connection means. When the upper surface of the adapter is introduced to the lower portion, the male and female connection elements coact, thereby establishing electrical contacts provided between the electronic component and the printed circuit. These adapters nevertheless have certain drawbacks which are set forth below. To compensate for errors of flatness between the printed circuit and the lower female portion of the adapter, it has been proposed to mount the female connection elements floatingly in the body of the adapter. However, this floating, combined with an error of soldering, has the tendency to push back the two elements to be soldered. Because of this, the female portion of the adapter will be in a high position and the connection with the printed circuit is not guaranteed. On the other hand, certain components such as microprocessors require numerous connections. The force applied to the component during coupling of the male portion to the female portion is proportional to the number of contacts; as a result, there is risk of damage to the component during assembly of the male and female portions of the adapter. Finally, to verify the condition of the soldering between the component and the male portion of the adapter or between the female portion and the printed circuit, it is necessary to have an x-ray device, the materials used for the adapters being opaque.
The object of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks mentioned above by providing an adapter which guarantees good electrical connections and which permits reducing the force necessary to be applied to the component to carry out the connection during coupling of its male and female portions. The adapter according to the invention is distinguished to this effect by the characteristics defined in claim 1.
The adapter of the present invention moreover permits easily verifying the condition of the soldering without requiring the use of an x-ray device. Other advantages will become apparent from the description which follows, and the dependent claims.